Research & reports
Peer-reviewed research and reports on community urban agriculture, food education, composting, welfare and more.
Theme
Critical findings
38 results(1 / 2)
Opportunities and Constraints for the Development of CSA in Poland in the Context of Agricultural and Rural Transformation
2026Magdalena Raftowicz, Mirosław Struś · · Poland
This theoretical study analyzes the potentials and barriers to the development of Community-Supported Agriculture (CSA) in Poland, drawing on existing research. It identifies key barriers to CSA development, including financial, legal, organizational, and social factors, which originate from both farmers and consumers. The ongoing land ownership concentration in Poland, fostering industrial agriculture, is contrary to sustainable development and EU agricultural policy, posing a significant barrier to CSA development, particularly for farmers.
Governance failureCSA & TeikeiEconomicsPolicyCommunityIs community-supported agriculture a case of real utopia? The case of Germany
2026Hannah Bücheler, Christine Bosch · Agroecology and Sustainable Food Systems · Germany
This paper explores the potential of Community-Supported Agriculture (CSA) in Germany, applying Erik Olin Wright’s concept of real utopia to assess if CSA challenges capitalist structures. Drawing on secondary literature, the study evaluates the desirability, feasibility, and achievability of CSA. The results suggest that CSA in Germany qualifies as a real utopia, but faces limitations to growth due to implementation constraints such as the need for additional market channels and access to land.
Governance failureCSA & TeikeiEconomicsFood sovereignty & justiceThe Role of CSA in Selected Theories of Rural Development
2026Magdalena Raftowicz, Mirosław Struś · · Europe
This chapter establishes a theoretical framework for examining the development of Community-Supported Agriculture (CSA). It argues that CSA aligns closely with sustainable development theory and should be regarded as an alternative to industrial agriculture. The analysis concludes that CSA constitutes a form of social and constructive innovation consistent with the sustainable development paradigm. However, the low level of social capital represents a key barrier to implementing the classical CSA model in Central and Eastern Europe.
Governance failureCSA & TeikeiEconomicsCommunityWhere have all the farmers gone? Spatial–temporal transformations of peri-urban agriculture in the Metropolitan Area of Barcelona
2026Johannes Langemeyer, Gabriele Gervasi, Sergi Ventura Caballé, Gara Villalba Méndez · Ecology and Society · Spain (Barcelona)
This study examined the spatial-temporal transformations of peri-urban agriculture in the Metropolitan Area of Barcelona from 2003 to 2015, combining spatial analysis of land use changes with qualitative insights from stakeholder interviews and workshops. Results reveal that the significant decline of peri-urban agriculture is driven by a complex interplay of real-estate speculation, land fragmentation, infrastructure development, evolving land use policies, and ecological pressures from land abandonment and environmental protection. Despite efforts to preserve agricultural spaces, the decline of peri-urban farming remains significant.
Governance failurePeri-urban agriculturePolicyEconomicsFood sovereignty & justiceBiodiversity Monitoring in Food Forests
2026Jana Marion Böhme · PubData · Europe
This study investigated the current state and professionality of biodiversity monitoring in food forest projects and influencing social-ecological factors through an online survey and interviews with German and Dutch experts. It found heterogeneous characteristics and professionality levels in monitoring activities, primarily due to context factors like actors, governance systems, and socio-economic settings. The professionality of monitoring depended on volunteer and expert availability and funding, indicating a lack of integrated, standardized, and systematic monitoring concepts and institutionalization.
Governance failureBiodiversityCommunityPolicyEconomicsViolation of land use regulations for allotment gardens: The case of Warsaw, Poland
2025Grażyna Wiejak-Roy, Jaideep Roy, D. Andrew · Land Use Policy · Poland (Warsaw)
This study examined the market for allotment gardens in Warsaw, Poland, using a mixed-method approach including thematic archival analysis of regulations and hedonic regression modeling on posted offers. The findings indicate a poor transaction framework, pricing sensitive to legal and illegal private investments, and prevalent illegal rent-seeking on land. Additionally, increasing investment in allotment gardens was found to reduce biodiversity.
Governance failureCommunityPolicyEconomicsUnderstanding community supported agriculture through the intersection of practices and socio-technical Regimes
2025Mattia Andreola · Discover Sustainability · Italy (Trento)
This study conducted three years of ethnographic research, including participant observation, in-depth interviews, and quantitative data analysis, on "NaturalMente in Trentino," a CSA initiative in Trento, Italy. The research revealed multiple lock-in points, indicating that CSA constraints stem from organizational inefficiencies, deeply rooted cultural and behavioral habits such as the use of private gardens or a preference for supermarket convenience, and rigid institutional frameworks like cooperative dominance in the local agri-food regime.
Governance failureCSA & TeikeiCommunityEconomicsExploring relations between community gardens and cultural institutions in terms of diverse governance models: A case study of Warsaw and Poznań, Poland
2024Barbara Maćkiewicz, Paulina Jeziorek · Przegląd Geograficzny · Poland
A two-case study in Warsaw and Poznań, Poland, explored the relationship between community gardens and cultural institutions, identifying factors that promote and impede their functioning. The study found that these gardens are characterized by a changing governance model, shifting towards a top-down approach where community members lack influence on strategic decisions. The involvement of cultural institutions, while facilitating longevity, may simultaneously disempower the gardens' viability.
Governance failureCommunityPolicyEconomicsFood sovereignty & justiceUsing visual methods to map green infrastructure for a sustainable food economy in Letchworth Garden City
2024Amélie André · · United Kingdom
This case study of Letchworth Garden City examined the interplay between the town's layout, social practices, and governance supporting a local sustainable food economy. Food mapping and an ethnographical approach showed how Letchworth's masterplan provides a backbone for alternative food infrastructure, though the edible landscape is not always visible or effective for residents. Discussions with experts also pointed to a gap in coordination among key local stakeholders, which would be beneficial for improving the local urban food strategy.
Governance failureCommunityPolicyEconomicsFood sovereignty & justice“I’m Happy for People to Collaborate, but I Don’t Want to Join in”. Addressing Failure in Community-supported Agriculture Networks
2023Bernd Bonfert · · United Kingdom; Germany
This article investigates "network failure" and collaboration barriers within Community-supported agriculture (CSA) networks in the UK and Germany, using qualitative case studies. The study found that CSA networks function effectively at national and local levels but experience relative failure at the regional level. Regular barriers to collaboration arise from capacity limitations, member differences, and competition, which the networks are actively trying to address.
Governance failureCSA & TeikeiCommunityEconomicsPolicyLe portage foncier public et sa réception par les agriculteurs. L’exemple du pacte agricole de la région Île-de-France
2023Alioune Badara Dabo · Norois · France (Île-de-France)
This article analyzes how the public land tenure system, introduced in the 2018 "Agricultural Pact" in the Île-de-France region, articulates with local farming systems. Based on a qualitative survey conducted in the Green Belt area, the findings reveal that this land tenure system does not fully align with the strategies of farmers, particularly young people outside family farming who wish to establish themselves in agriculture, as they do not necessarily seek land ownership.
Governance failurePolicyPeri-urban agricultureEconomicsVisionscapes: combining heritage and urban gardening to enhance areas requiring regeneration
2022Grete Swensen, Vebjørn Egner Stafseng, Véronique Karine Simon · International Journal of Heritage Studies · France (Bordeaux)
This comparative case study examines two regeneration projects, the Darwin Ecosystem Project in Bordeaux, France, and Dr. Dedichen’s Greenhouse in Oslo, Norway, to understand how heritage combined with urban gardening can enhance areas requiring regeneration. The study notes that conflicting economic, political, and cultural views are likely to affect the heritage discourse in marginalized urban areas. It describes how old buildings and historical fragments can be integrated into urban planning initiatives, with residents, artists, and citizen groups cooperating with planning authorities to transform neighborhoods.
Governance failureCommunityPolicyEconomicsHealthReview of “How Green Became Good. Urbanized Nature and the Making of Cities and Citizens”
2022Fiona Greenland · Social Forces · Germany (Ruhr valley)
This review of "How Green Became Good" by Hillary Angelo examines why urban greening became a public good, challenging conventional accounts. Tracing urban greening in Germany's Ruhr valley, Angelo argues that greening constructs not only physical spaces but also social imaginaries, where nature as a public good is mutually constitutive with economic production needs, rather than being in opposition. The work shifts the understanding of urbanized nature from inherently contentious politics to a socio-cultural process of urban modernization.
Governance failureCommunityPolicyEconomicsTransforming the Use of Agricultural Premises under Urbanization Pressures: A Story from a Second-Tier Post-Socialist City
2022Petr Klusáček, Stanislav Martinát, Klára Charvátová, Josef Navrátil · Land · Europe
This study investigated the drivers of de-agrarianization in post-socialist cities, using Brno, Czech Republic, as a case study through qualitative interviews. It found procedural issues in preserving architectural heritage during the redevelopment of a former Cistercian monastery site, often resulting in only fragments being preserved. The research also demonstrated a decline in the use of urban agricultural properties, which are rapidly transformed into new urban environments under intense urbanization pressures.
Governance failureUrban–rural linkagePolicyEconomicsClimate changeCan Allotment Gardens (AGs) Be Considered an Example of Nature-Based Solutions (NBS) Based on the Use of Historical Green Infrastructure?
2021Barbara Sowińska-Świerkosz, Malwina Michalik-Śnieżek, Alicja Bieske-Matejak · Sustainability · Poland
This study analyzed the potential of allotment gardens (AGs) in Poland to be considered nature-based solutions (NBS), examining their use of green/blue infrastructure, problem-solving capabilities, benefits, and economic efficiency. The study identified institutional barriers, irregular distribution of benefits, and deficiencies in economic efficiency as significant obstacles. It concluded that AGs, while a type of unsophisticated NBS, have limited effectiveness.
Governance failureCommunityPolicyEconomicsHow to guarantee food supply during pandemics? Rethinking local food systems from peri-urban strategic agents’ behaviour: The case study of the Barcelona Metropolitan Region
2021Sònia Callau-Berenguer, Anna Roca-Torrent, Josep Montasell-Dorda, Sandra Ricart · Investigaciones Geográficas · Spain (Barcelona)
This study analyzed the food system behavior in the Barcelona Metropolitan Region, Spain, during the initial stage of the Covid-19 pandemic (March-May 2020). Semi-structured interviews with 11 peri-urban entities and institutions revealed shortcomings in the operation and logistics of the metropolitan food system. Findings also indicated complicity between local producers and urban consumers, the role of peri-urban agricultural areas in food supply, and a need for cooperation among food system agents.
Governance failurePeri-urban agricultureFood sovereignty & justiceEconomicsPolicyGoals and persistence of sustainability experiments in divergent urban contexts: urban agriculture and a geodemographic classification in London
2021Irene Håkansson · Local Environment · United Kingdom (London)
This paper critically examines urban experimentation for sustainability, arguing that urban experiments are often assessed from a diffusion-oriented perspective that over-emphasizes unifying visions and neglects unsuccessful initiatives. Using a novel methodological approach combining a metropolitan geodemographic typology with qualitative data on 166 active and inactive urban agriculture initiatives across London, the paper demonstrates that neglecting the diversity of urban socio-economic, demographic, and physical contexts may lead to the erroneous suggestion that only demographically privileged places can achieve sustainability. It highlights that contextual differences at neighborhood levels significantly influence socio-spatial patterns of experimentation.
Governance failureCommunityPolicyEconomicsTransformative potential from the ground up: Sustainable innovation journeys, soft change and alignment of interests in urban food initiatives
2021Damian Maye, Paul Swagemakers, J.S.C. Wiskerke, Heidrun Moschitz, James Kirwan, Ingrid Jahrl · European Urban and Regional Studies · Europe
This study utilized the 'sustainable innovation journeys' concept to trace urban food initiatives in Rotterdam (Netherlands), Vigo (Spain), and Zurich (Switzerland) over a six-year period from 2013 to 2018. While micro-level innovation practices can induce sustainability shifts, particularly when aligned with policy interests, the study also observed potentially negative impacts due to a lack of alignment at the initiative or city-region levels.
Governance failurePolicyEconomicsCommunityFood sovereignty & justiceFormalizing Objectives and Criteria for Urban Agriculture Sustainability with a Participatory Approach
2020Paola Clerino, Agnès Fargue‐Lelièvre · Sustainability · France
This study used a participatory approach with French urban agriculture stakeholders to identify sustainability objectives and 21 criteria for professional intra-urban farms. Six objectives were established, and agro-environmental and socio-territorial criteria were deemed more important than economic ones, with food production not being mentioned. A critical finding was that decision-makers focused more on projects' external sustainability and urban farmers' agricultural background, suggesting a reliance on farmers for internal sustainability rather than direct assessment.
Governance failureCommunityPolicyEconomicsClimate changeUrbane Landwirtschaft im Ruhrgebiet
2020Ulrich Häpke · sub\urban zeitschrift für kritische stadtforschung · Germany (Ruhrgebiet)
While statistical data demonstrates the significance of urban agriculture in German cities and metropolitan areas, urban agriculture faces the problem of constant land loss despite its proximity to consumers. The example of the Ruhrgebiet highlights challenges such as land loss and high proportions of leased land, indicating governance issues faced by urban agriculture.
Governance failureUrban–rural linkageEconomicsPolicyCommunityCo-designing cities
2020Andrea Baier, Christa Müller · · Germany
This chapter discusses the results of semi-structured face-to-face interviews conducted in 2016 with activists in three urban community gardens in Bremen, Cologne, and Kassel, Germany. The study focused on the relationship between urban projects and municipal administrations. It showed that initiatives taken by grassroots activists to form collaborations with administrative actors are limited, though the traditional role of citizens can be extended in new local partnerships.
Governance failureCommunityPolicyEconomicsHet natuurlijk kapitaal van de Lutkemeerpolder
2020Jeroen Schütt, Bas Amelung · · Europe
This research, conducted by the Science Shop of Wageningen University and Research, estimated the monetary value of ecosystem services in the Lutkemeerpolder, Amsterdam, which is slated for conversion into a business park. The study identified food production, air purification, recreation, and the effect of greenery on housing prices as key services, valuing them at 1.5 to 8.6 million euros per year. These ecosystem service values were not considered in the original decision-making twenty years ago, leading to a recommendation to reconsider the development plan.
Governance failurePolicyCommunityEconomicsBiodiversityCultivating food or cultivating citizens? On the governance and potential of community gardens in Amsterdam
2020Luca Sára Bródy, Mandy de Wilde · Local Environment · Netherlands (Amsterdam)
Based on a qualitative study of 19 community gardening projects in Amsterdam, this research argues that community gardens function as “controlled space.” Various institutional governance actors, including local government, welfare organizations, green NGOs, and housing associations, exert varied levels of influence and control over the gardens. These relations both impair and enable the civic participation of gardeners, the inclusive potential of gardens, and an alternative, local food provision and distribution.
Governance failureCommunityPolicyEconomicsUrban Agriculture in shared spaces: The difficulties with collaboration in an age of austerity
2019Rebecca St. Clair, Michael Hardman, Richard Armitage, Graeme Sherriff · Urban Studies · United Kingdom (Manchester)
This study, conducted in Wythenshawe, Manchester, UK, highlights the difficulties of collaboration among organizations in a lottery-funded urban agriculture project. Due to local authority cutbacks and a lack of funding, community groups and charitable organizations compete for space and resources, leading to a "siege mentality" where organizational self-preservation takes precedence over cooperation. This paradoxically results in groups with similar goals working against each other instead of collaborating.
Governance failureCommunityPolicyEconomicsTemporary urban landscapes and urban gardening
2019Sofia Nikolaidou · Manchester University Press eBooks · Europe
This chapter examines new forms of urban gardening, often involving informal and temporary reuse of vacant land, and their impact on urban green space governance and planning practices. Using examples from Greece and Switzerland, it highlights differences and similarities in practices, social and institutional contexts, and collaborative governance patterns. The study calls attention to the critical role of the temporary nature of these initiatives, which affects new configurations of urban green areas and public space, and related planning practices.
Governance failureCommunityPolicyUrban–rural linkageEconomics